Girls Like Girls
by flisterr
Summary: Eight months have passed since the events in Life is Strange. Victoria has helped Max recover from the events and everything lost, becoming close friends in the process. School has ended, and summer is here. Max takes a week long trip to the Chase Manor in Yarrow Point, WA. Based off the song Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko. Brief Victoria/Nathan. Warning of abusive relationship.
1. Saw Your Face

Nerves tightened her stomach in a knot as the Chase Manor came in to view. _Why am I so anxious? It's just Victoria._ The cab approached cast in the shadow of the mansion, giving it a menacing appearance. _Just Victoria. Who's helped you through the past eight months. Who's been there for you._ The cab pulled up to the front walkway. _You can do this, Caulfield._

She quickly dealt with the taxi driver, paying for her ride with a generous tip. After shouldering her bags and double checking she had everything, Max took a deep breath and stepped out of the cab. Flowers lined the walkway to the front door in beautiful arrangements. _I'd love to take photos around here at some point this week._

Anxiety sat heavy in her stomach, growing as Max approached the door. _You couldn't wait to see her twenty minutes ago. It'll be fine, she's your friend._ She stared at the door trying to regain her confidence, deciding with a sigh to just knock. Within seconds it swung open, Victoria standing right behind it, a grin quickly spreading across her face with recognition of the visitor. Her unusual excitement gave Max pause. _She's never this excited to see me._ Shrugging it off, Max smiled back at the blonde with less enthusiasm. Victoria wrapped her in a hug before pulling her into the house.

She was immediately met with a pleasant, if not exceptionally clean, smell upon entering. _Lavender and that unplaceable home smell._ The entranceway was remarkable; professional black-and-white photos lined the stark white walls, dark hardwood floors partially covered in lush rugs, light streaming through long windows along the high walls, giving the whole entry a vibrant appearance.

"Did you hear me Max?" Her attention was immediately brought back to the conversation she hadn't been listening to. Victoria looked at her over a shoulder, the taller girl already making her way through the house. A slightly amused smile played at the corners of her mouth. "God, you're such a space cadet. I asked how the ride over was. The traffic is usually horrible at this time. I can't believe you slept through your alarms. I had so much planned for today." Max followed her through a doorway into a large kitchen and dining area. Victoria continued to complain about Max's inability to behave like a proper adult. Max was barely listening, too busy taking in her lavish surroundings. The high ceilings seemed to continue throughout this side of the house, large skylights allowing for the natural lighting currently spilling throughout the room. After realizing Max's attention was no longer on her, the blonde sighed. "There she goes again." Victoria said endearingly. "But really, how was the ride up?"

"The drive wasn't bad." Max answered, reserved. Honestly, she had her headphones in most of the time and wasn't even sure how long of a ride it was. She turned around, taking in the splendor that was the Chase Manor, when someone wrapped their arms around her from the back, causing her to jump slightly. Knuckles rubbed on her scalp, fussing up her hair.

"Hey, hipster." Nathan sneered at her, dropping an arm heavily onto Max's shoulders. _Seriously? I thought we were over that 'hipster' shit._ "I can't _wait_ to spend the week with you." The statement was meant as a joke, but had an undertone of something else. His arm was draped uncomfortably over her back as he led her towards the kitchen. Victoria was already sitting on the counter; a cigarette pressed against her lips, fingers wrapped around a lighter and striking the flint.

"Really? I thought after the past few months of school, you'd be sick of me." Her response lacked the bite she had intended, her eyes distracted by the gentle way Victoria held her cigarette, soft lips lightly pressed to the filter, though Max would rather them. . . _Just my friend, Victoria. And her boyfriend, Nathan._

"How could I ever be sick of Blackwell's superhero, Max Caulfield?" His words dripped with sarcasm. "You only saved the whole school." For some reason, Nathan continued to be bitter about what transpired last October. Max wasn't sure why, but she never dwelled on it too long, for fear of bringing up other memories.

"She saved your ass, too, Nathan." Victoria's response was barely a whisper, but she saw Nathan tense up. Victoria shrunk into herself, her usual confident demeanor faltering. _This is weird. They usually rag on each other, but something seems off about this._

Before Nathan could respond, Max cut in, trying to defuse the situation. "Ya, ya, whatever, I'm a hero. Let's get over it, okay?" She glanced between the two of them, hoping that would be the end of it. Nathan continued to fume, but left the room without a response. Victoria instantly relaxed, flashing Max a relieved look before returning her focus to the cigarette in hand. Max pushed herself up on to the counter next to Victoria, enjoying the comfortable silence that settled between them.

Suddenly, Victoria turned to Max, holding her gaze for a moment before blowing smoke in her face. Max had never really liked the smell, but somehow it was intoxicating coming from Victoria. Surprising herself, she readily accepted when Victoria's slim fingers offered the cigarette to Max. She pressed her lips to the filter, taking a deep drag. The sensation of Victoria's fingers so close to her mouth distracted from the burn in her lungs.

"I missed you." Victoria said it under her breath, turning to look at Max. Their eyes met and Victoria look away quickly, a blush creeping up her neck. _Did she just? What was that?_

Max reached up to take the cigarette, fingers lightly brushing Victoria's. The blush spread up her cheeks as she quickly withdrew her hand. _I'm pretty sure we're having a moment right now._ Max stared at her newfound cigarette in contemplation. _This is not what I expected to be happening._

"I missed you, too." Max saw Victoria's hand pause briefly as she lifted a new cigarette from the box. She turned to Max, their eyes meeting, smiles mirrored. A warm feeling spread through Max's stomach.

* * *

Victoria leaned back against the windowsill, watching the smoke spiral up through the setting sun rays. She slowly brought a cigarette to her mouth, lost in thought. _It's only been two weeks since school ended, but everything seems so different. At least I still have Max._ Victoria turned to look at the brunette who was laying back on the counter, arms sprawled above her head. Something jumped in Victoria's stomach at the site of her. _She looks so peaceful and…_ Her thoughts were interrupted by Nathan as he stumbled into the room, his clumsy movements disturbing the smoke. _So beautiful, but so fleeting._

Nathan dropped his empty beer bottle into the sink, the clatter shattering the comfortable silence that had settled with the smoke. Victoria cringed unwittingly. Max looked at her with genuine concern. Victoria smiled back, her best fake smile on her face.


	2. Heard Your Name

Wind blew around Max, blowing strands of brunette hair in front of her camera. She lowered it, deciding to watch her subject without a lens. Victoria danced to no music, becoming part of the wind as it swirled around her. Her hands caressed down her body, Max's eyes following. Victoria's blouse rose up slightly with the wind, flashing a bit of the pale skin underneath. A blush spread across Max's face, her eyes quickly darting away. She turned in time to watch Nathan toss up a baseball, just missing it with the swing of a bat. "Fuck." His shout echoed back through the valley. He picked up the ball again, choosing instead to angrily toss it towards the surrounding forest. _He doesn't seem to have as much control on his anger as he did. I wonder if he's still going to therapy._

Max's attention turned back to Victoria, watching the girl carelessly twirl, a blanket blowing in the wind above her. Her eyes were drawn up to Victoria's face. It was free of the usual stress lines, completely relaxed in the quiet peace of a summer evening. Max's heart sang at the rare beauty of the blonde with her walls down.

Nathan struck another baseball into the far tree line, the metal bat ringing out at the hit. His arms fell to his side as he watched the ball crash through the leaves in the distance. He dropped the bat, exchanging it for the ever present beer by his left foot, raising it to nurse it. Eventually, or rather quickly, he became bored of staring at the trees and turned towards Victoria. "What the hell are you doing?"

Victoria immediately stopped when she heard the poison in Nathan's voice. "I was just, dancing, I guess. . ." Her voice trailed off as she took a step back. One hand dropped loosely to her side, blanket clutched in white knuckles, the other self-consciously ran through her pixie cut. Her shield was immediately put back up, stress lines returning to her beautiful face.

"You guess that's what you were doing?" Nathan scoffed. "Well, you looked fucking stupid." He sat the beer down, picking the baseball equipment back up. "You've been hanging out with Lamefield too much." He tossed a ball up, knocking it after its predecessor. The metal tang echoed back, emphasizing the silence around them. This had been the theme of the day since Max woke up to shouting on Victoria's couch.

"What the fuck are you doing, Vic!?" Nathan's shout rang through the house. Max sat up, rubbing her bleary eyes. _What's going on?_ The smell and sound of sizzling bacon filled the house. _I should probably check that out._ Murmuring could be heard from the kitchen. Max couldn't hear much, but had heard her name mentioned once or twice. Silence fell through the kitchen as she rounded the corner, hand running through her hair to tame the morning mess.

Nathan had Victoria pressed up against the counter, menacingly standing over her. Victoria's hands were behind her on the counter, one clasped around a spatula. Bacon and eggs went forgotten on the stove. Victoria was the first to look over, tears building up in her eyes. Nathan's gaze followed quickly after, a death glare shot at the intruder.

"Are you making breakfast?" Max innocently cut in, trying not to set Nathan off further. Victoria stepped carefully away from Nathan, leaving him awkwardly positioned in the corner.

"Ya, I thought I might make us all something to start the day off. You know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Victoria's voice had none of its usual liveliness, sounding drained. "I just, guess I forgot Nathan is a vegetarian." A blush grew on her face, but not one out of embarrassment. Her shoulders slumped, her eyes dropping to the floor. Her hand hung at her side, the spatula barely in her grasp.

"I don't know how you could have forgotten." Nathan quickly spoke up, stepping closer to Victoria. She cringed away, only pissing Nathan off more. "It's not like you fuck up like this _every week._ " Max could feel his anger rising, the tension in the room quickly building with it. He stepped closer towards Victoria, slightly raising a hand.

Max cut in quick, stepping towards the two. "Hey, it's alright. We can make some pancakes too, right, Tori?" Max cautiously reached out to her friends shoulder, squeezing it encouragingly, while also placing herself between Victoria and Nathan. _He's always been quick to anger, but there's something else. I need to get Victoria alone to talk to her._ Victoria relaxed slightly at the touch, her face softening.

"Smart thinking, Lamefield." Victoria gave a weak smile towards the brunette before returning to the stove. Max followed, searching through the cabinets for pancake mix and a bowl to put it in. Nathan continued to glare down Max. A shiver ran down her spine.

Despite her best attempts, Max was unable to get Victoria alone all day. After slightly resurrecting the breakfast, they left the house to spend the day walking around the small town and visiting various corner stores. Nathan followed Victoria like a shadow in all aspects. A constant scowl lived on his face, never more than two steps away from her. Max continued to find the dynamic strange. _I never noticed at school how possessive he was. Then again, I never saw the two of them alone often. Only ever in class or the hallway._

Victoria sat next to Max, bringing her back to reality. The blanket was wrapped over her slumped shoulders, eyes defeated. _I need to figure this out. For Victoria's sake._ The blonde's knee brushed Max's, goose bumps spreading down her legs. Victoria seemingly took this as Max being cold, draping half the blanket over her shoulder. The blanket was just big enough that if they sat with their sides pressed together, it covered the both of them. Max wasn't sure, but it seemed as if Victoria was leaning in to her. She side eyed her, catching Victoria staring. Max caught her eyes, holding them for a second, when the moment was broken by the sound of shattering glass.

Victoria pulled her gaze away from the girl's entrancing blue eyes as glass exploded across the field. A heavy sigh escaped her lips. _Can't he not ruin something just once?_ She sneaked another glance at Max, catching her staring at Victoria's hands. _I don't know what's going on here. But it would help if Nathan wasn't. . . . Nathan._

As if reading her thoughts, Nathan shattered the last bottle against his bat. "We're going to go now." He turned towards the girls, boredom apparent in his voice. A slightly confused look passed over his face seeing them huddled under the blanket, but it didn't faze him long. Without waiting for a response, he stalked past, back towards the car. Victoria jumped up quickly, not wanting to make him wait. _I know how he gets when he doesn't take his medications._ She brushed the dirt and dried grass off her shorts before taking off after Nathan.

Max followed behind them, slowly walking through the trees. She stopped a few times to snap pictures of the landscape and wildlife. When the car came into view, Max could see Victoria and Nathan seemed to be in a heated conversation. She could hear Nathan's upset voice through the closed windows. "I don't need you telling me how to live my life! You're just like everyone else!" Victoria's eyes immediately dropped at the accusation. Nathan's hands were gripping the steering wheel, knuckles white. Victoria said something, but it wasn't audible through the car as Nathan's shouting had been. They both glanced at Max as she approached the car, the tension palpable as she got in to the car.


End file.
